Exeter man, Verona woman charged with first-degree murder after body discovered in trunk of burnt car

Two Barry County residents are being held without bond on charges of first-degree murder, armed criminal action, abandonment of a corpse and tampering with physical evidence.

In a news release issued today, the Barry County Sheriff's Office said Brandi Coburn, 34, Verona, and Jimmy Taylor, 47, Exeter, shot Marvin Lance McCullough at a Verona home, put his body in the trunk of a car, then set the car on fire.

A Shell Knob towing company found McCulloch's body March 20.

From Brandi Coburn's probable cause statement, which was filed Wednesday in Barry County Circuit Court:

On 03/20/2025, I responded to Schrader's Towing at 24721 State Highway 39, Shell Knob, Barry County, MO, regarding a body found in the trunk of a burnt car. Schrader's Towing recovered the vehicle a week prior from the scene of a fire on Farm Road 1170, less than three miles from Brandy's residence. 

On 03/24/2025, blood samples were taken during an autopsy of the body and submitted to the Missouri State Highway Patrol's Rapid DNA system. The results identified the remains as Victim #1. 

On 03/27/2025, I interviewed Witness #1 at the Barry County Sheriff's Office to obtain her knowledge regarding this case. Witness #1 told me that Brandy had called her on 03/22/2025 and admitted that she shot Victim #1 in the head. 

During a post-Miranda interview with Sheriff Danny Boyd, Witness #2 (Jimmy Taylor) stated that he went to Brandy's camper and that Brandy told him she shot Victim #1 in the back of the head. Witness #2 stated Brandy convinced him to help her get rid of Victim #1 's body. 

Witness #2 admitted that he and Suspect #2 put Victim #1 in the trunk of his own car and towed the vehicle from Brandy's residence onto Farm Road 1170. Witness #1 said Brandy and Suspect #2 were in Victim #1 's vehicle while he towed it and steered the car off the road at the bottom of a hill. 

Witness #2 said he observed Suspect #2 set the car on fire before all three parties left the scene in Witness #2's truck. 

During a post-Miranda interview with Sheriff Danny Boyd, Suspect #2 said that he knew beforehand that Brandy intended to lure Victim #I over to her residence to "set him up." Suspect #2 said he was standing near the bathroom in the camper and handed Victim #1 a flashlight to view some items in the front area of the camper. 

Suspect #2 said after he diverted Victim #1 's attention toward the items, Brandy pointed a small silver gun with a white pearl handle to Victim #1 's head and fired one shot. Suspect #2 said he and Brandy left Victim #I dead inside the camper for three days before Brandy, Suspect #2, and Witness #2 removed Victim #1 's body from the camper and placed Victim #1 's body in the trunk of his own car. 

Suspect #2 confirmed he and Brandy were inside Victim #1 's car as Witness #2 towed it behind his truck with a chain. Suspect #2 said he and Brandy left Victim #1 's vehicle at the bottom of the hill on Farm Road 1170, where it was set on fire. 

On 03/27/2025, I executed a search warrant on Brandy's camper and discovered what appeared to be blood on a lower portion of a sink cabinet toward the front of Brandy's camper. A rapid presumptive test indicated the presence of blood. 

We submitted blood samples to the Missouri State Highway Patrol's Rapid DNA system and confirmed that the blood matched Victim #1. Brandy is currently being held in the Barry County Jail on separate charges.